📷 Image Credits: Moneycontrol
SoftBank, the Japanese conglomerate, has made headlines by fully exiting its position in One97 Communication, the parent company of Indian fintech giant Paytm. As per the latest shareholding data, SVF India Holdings (Cayman) Limited, a subsidiary of SoftBank, has sold off its remaining 1.4% stake in Paytm, marking the end of a series of regular offloads that began in November 2022. This divestment has drastically reduced SoftBank’s initial 18.5% stake in Paytm to a mere 1.4% by March 2024. This development closely follows SoftBank’s successful exit from another Indian venture, PB Fintech, the parent company of the popular insurance marketplace PolicyBazaar. Initially investing approximately $200 million in PB Fintech, SoftBank is reported to have earned around $650 million in returns on its total investment in the insurance aggregator. As SoftBank shifts its investment focus, other entities like Treeline, a prominent hedge fund based out of Singapore and Hong Kong, as well as UBS Principal Capital Asia, have increased their shareholding in Paytm to 1.18% and 1.08%, respectively, post-SoftBank’s exit. Despite this, the overall Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) shareholding in Paytm has experienced a 2% decline from 39.77% to 37.77%. On the other hand, domestic mutual funds have seen a 0.65% increase in shareholding, reaching 6.80% in Q1 FY 2025, primarily led by Mirae Mutual Fund and Nippon India Mutual Fund. Retail shareholding has also witnessed growth, jumping by 1.30% to 16.56%, resulting in a 0.29% rise in stake by domestic institutional investors from 6.86% to 7.15%.
